The Mystery of our Faith
May 22, 2005 Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity (A) - White
First Reading: Exodus 34:4b-6,8-9
Responsorial Psalm: Daniel 3
"Glory and praise for ever!"
Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Gospel: John 3:16-18
"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all."
The faith that we received in Baptism is symbolical of our love for God and neighbor. This faith has made us one in communion with the entire universal Church. Although we, Christians, are different physically among each other, we are one but the same in faith and hope in the Risen Lord. "As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ." (1 Cor 12:12) Therefore, this "unity in diversity" makes us sons and daughters of the one author of this faith who is God. We, being part of one body, therefore profess one faith, live in one faith, and solemnly commit ourselves in one faith.
We talk about one faith. According to the Athanasian Creed, our faith is this: "We worship one God in the Trinity and the Trinity in unity, without either confusing the persons or dividing the substance; for the person of the Father is one, the Son’s is another, the Holy Spirit’s another; but the Godhead of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is one, their glory equal, their majesty coeternal." We are then introduced to the mystery of the Trinity, whose solemnity we celebrate today. We are baptized in faith according to our Christian belief in the Trinity, calling us "to share in the life of the Blessed Trinity, here on earth in the obscurity of faith, and after death in eternal life" (CCC 265). Therefore our Christian life is marked by the sign of the Trinity: "three Persons, equal in majesty, undivided in splendor, yet one Lord, one God, ever to be adored…" (Preface of the Holy Trinity). This mystery we couldn’t understand without the eyes, hearts and minds of faith.
Knowing this belief, we should get to know the mystery, person and works of the Trinity. The Trinity is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. As the cycle of Salvation History continues, the Trinity "reveals himself to men ‘and reconciles and unites with himself those who turn away from sin’" (CCC 234) and go back to his love. The Trinity, therefore, is a mystery in action at the start of time. "The Father is Creator of the world. The Son revealed the Father, not only being a creator but also He is eternally Father to the Son, who is eternally Son to the Father. The Son also revelaed the coming of the Spirit, another divine person with Jesus and the Father. The Spirit now reveals to us the Father and the Son" (cf CCC 240, 243-244). Therefore "the sending of the person of the Spirit after Jesus’ glorification reveals in its fullness the mystery of the Holy Trinity." (CCC 244) Summarizing the acts of the Trinity, we can conclude that: The Father acted during the Old Testament era. The Son, Jesus Christ, came to this world and continued the work of the Father. The Holy Spirit, "sent by the Father in the name of the Son (Jn 14:26) and by the Son ‘from the Father’ (Jn 15:26)" (CCC 263) is to move the early Christians in mission. This work of the Spirit continues up to now until the end of age. How different are their works in different timeframes, "the divine persons are also inseparable in what they do." (CCC 267) Therefore, the work of the Father and the Son is also the work of the Spirit. Let us also not forget that although they are one in their works, they are distinct from one another "in their relations of origin: ‘It is the Father who generates, the Son who is begotten, and the Holy Spirit who proceeds.’" (CCC 254) Therefore, knowing the mystery and person of the Trinity, we can say that the sign of the Trinity is "the central mystery of Christian faith and life." (CCC 234)
Therefore, having introduced to the mystery of the Trinity, are we ready to profess in our hearts the mystery of our faith? Are we ready to proclaim that "God is our Father, Jesus is his eternally-begotten Son, and that the Holy Spirit is worshipped and glorified with the Father and the Son" (cf. Nicene Creed)? The Trinity is mysterium fidei - the mystery of our faith. Therefore, are we ready to live in the mystery of our faith - the Trinity?
Living as Christians
The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of the Christian faith and of Christian life. The Trinity lives in communion with each other. Let us try to live in communion with the Church by our loving service to our neighbors and by sharing ourselves wholistically in the mission of Christ.
